System and method for real-time streaming of ultrasound data to a diagnostic medical ultrasound streaming application

• US 6,733,449 B1
• Filed: 03/20/2003
• Issued: 05/11/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 03/20/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Siemens Medical Solutions USA Incorporated (Siemens AG)
• Original Assignee: Siemens Medical Solutions USA Incorporated (Siemens AG)
• Inventors: Nadadur, Desikachari, Waataja, David A., Krishnamurthy, Suresh B., Landry, Peter B., Marney, Christian H.
• Primary Examiner(s): Jaworski, Francis J.
• Application Number:
  US10/393,091
• Time in Patent Office: 418 Days
• Field of Search: 600/437, 600/443, 600/447, 707/1
• US Class Current: 600/437
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/00 Diagnosis using ultrasonic, sonic or infrasonic waves imaging of objects using sonar G01S15/00
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/44 Constructional features of the ultrasonic, sonic or infrasonic diagnostic device
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/52025 for pulse systems G01S7/52034 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/52034 Data rate converters
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 30/20 for handling medical images, e.g. DICOM, HL7 or PACS
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/63 for local operation

Abstract

A diagnostic medical ultrasound system is disclosed. The system obtains data representative of an ultrasonic echo, processes that data in a sequential architecture, and transmits the result to an output. Further, the ultrasound system provides an interface for non-sequentially architectured applications to interact within the sequential architecture of the present invention.

Claims

1. An ultrasound stream manager for a diagnostic medical ultrasound system, said ultrasound system comprising at least one processor, at least one data source and at least one data sink, said stream manager operative to facilitate communication between a first application program executing in said processor and at least one of said at least one data source and said at least one data sink, said stream manager comprising:

at least one data interface coupled with one of said at least one data source and said at least one data sink;

at least one first application interface operative to couple an associated one of said at least one data interface with said first application program such that data may be transmitted between said first application program and said at least one data interface; and

a stream controller coupled with said at least one data interface and said at least one first application interface, and operative to facilitate a first stream of data between one of said at least one data interface and one of said at least one first application interface.

2. The ultrasound stream manager of claim 1, wherein said stream controller is further coupled with said first application program, wherein said stream controller is responsive to said first application program and wherein said stream controller is operative to receive a request from said first application program to facilitate said data stream.

3. The ultrasound stream manager of claim 2, wherein said first application program is operative to register with said stream controller to make said request.

4. The ultrasound stream manager of claim 1, wherein said at least one data source is characterized by a specific data protocol, wherein said at least one data interface is coupled with said characterized data source and is further operative to normalize data received from said characterized data source, said normalized data characterized by a generic data protocol.

5. The ultrasound stream manager of claim 1, wherein said at least one data sink is characterized by a specific data protocol, wherein said at least one data interface is coupled with said characterized data source and is further operative to convert data from a general data protocol to said specific data protocol of said characterized data sink.

6. The ultrasound stream manager of claim 5, wherein said specific data protocol comprises a specified precision.

7. The ultrasound stream manager of claim 6, wherein said characterized data sink comprises a video display, said specified precision being characterized in terms of a vertical synchronization signal of said video display.

8. The ultrasound stream manager of claim 1, wherein at least one of said at least one data source includes an ultrasound image data source selected from the group consisting of B-Mode image data, Color Mode image data, BC-Mode image data, Doppler image data, M-Mode image data, Pre-scan converted image data.

9. The ultrasound stream manager of claim 1, wherein said at least one data source comprises a waveform data source selected from the group consisting of ECG, EKG, Pulse, and Respiration.

10. The ultrasound stream manager of claim 1, wherein said at least one data source comprises an ultrasound transducer.

11. The ultrasound stream manager of claim 1, wherein said at least one data source comprises a storage device.

12. The ultrasound stream manager of claim 1, wherein said at least one data source comprises a network interface coupled with a remote data source via a network.

13. The ultrasound stream manager of claim 1, wherein said at least one data sink comprises one of a display, a video recorder, a storage device, a memory buffer and a network interface, said network interface coupled with a remote data sink via a network.

14. The ultrasound stream manager of claim 1, wherein said stream controller is further operative to facilitate said first data stream substantially synchronously between said at least one first application interface and said at least one data interface.

15. The ultrasound stream manager of claim 1, wherein said stream controller is further operative to facilitate said first data stream substantially asynchronously between said at least one first application interface and said at least one data interface.

16. The ultrasound stream manager of claim 1, wherein said stream controller is further operative to facilitate on demand access to said first stream of data between said at least one application interface and said at least one data interface.

17. The ultrasound stream manager of claim 1, wherein said stream controller is further operative to regulate said first stream of data.

18. The ultrasound stream manager of claim 1, wherein said stream controller is further operative to buffer said first stream of data.

19. The ultrasound stream manager of claim 18, wherein said stream controller comprises first and second buffers, each of said first and second buffers characterized by a fixed capacity, wherein said first stream of data is alternately buffered in said first and second buffers to maintain a continuous flow of data between said first application program and said at least one application interface when said first stream of data exceeds said fixed capacity of one of said first and second buffers.

20. The ultrasound stream manager of claim 1, further comprising a second application interface coupled with a second data interface, wherein said second data interface is coupled with at least one of said at least one data source and said at least one data sink, wherein said stream controller is further coupled with a second application program coupled with said second application interface, said stream controller being further operative to facilitate a second stream of data between said second application interface and said second data interface concurrently with said first stream without impeding said first stream.

21. The ultrasound stream manager of claim 1, wherein for said first data stream between said at least one data interface and said at least one application interface, said stream controller is further operative to substantially simultaneously provide said first data stream directly to a video display coupled with said ultrasound system and to said first application interface.

22. The ultrasound stream manager of claim 1, wherein said first application program is operative to selectively compute a boundary of an object represented in a data stream comprising at least a portion of an ultrasound scan of said object, said first application program being further operative to generate a representation of said boundary on a display coupled with said ultrasound system, said display substantially simultaneously displaying said portion of said ultrasound scan.

23. The ultrasound stream manager of claim 1, wherein said stream controller is coupled with said at least one data interface and said at least one first application interface after said stream controller begins executing in said processor.

24. A method, in a diagnostic medical ultrasound system, said ultrasound system comprising at least one processor, at least one data source and at least one data sink, said method for facilitating communication between a first application program executing in said processor and at least one of said at least one data source and said at least one data sink, said method comprising:

providing at least one data interface coupled with one of said at least one data source and said at least one data sink;

generating, selectively, at least one first application interface operative to couple an associated one of said at least one data interface with said first application program such that data may be transmitted between said first application program and said at least one data interface; and

facilitating a first stream of data between one of said at least one data interface and one of said at least one first application interface.

25. The method of claim 24, further comprising:

(f) receiving a request from said first application program to generate said first application interface.

26. The method of claim 24, wherein each of said at least one data source is characterized by a specific data protocol, (a) further comprising normalizing data received from said associated data source, said normalized data characterized by a general data protocol.

27. The method of claim 24, wherein each of said at least one data sink is characterized by a specific data protocol and said transmitted data is characterized by a general data protocol, (b) further comprising converting said transmitted data from said general data protocol to said specific data protocol of said associated data sink.

28. The method of claim 24, wherein said at least one data source comprises an ultrasound image data source selected from the group consisting of B-Mode image data, Color Mode image data, BC-Mode image data, Doppler image data, M-Mode image data, Pre-scan converted image data.

29. The method of claim 24, wherein said at least one data source comprises a waveform data source selected from the group consisting of ECG, EKG, Pulse, and Respiration.

30. The method of claim 24, wherein said at least one data source comprises an ultrasound transducer.

31. The method of claim 24, wherein said at least one data source comprises a storage device.

32. The method of claim 24, wherein said at least one data source comprises a network interface coupled with a remote data source via a network.

33. The method of claim 24, wherein said at least one data sink comprises one of a video display, a video recorder, a storage device, a memory buffer and a network interface, said network interface coupled with a remote data sink via network.

34. The method of claim 24, wherein (e) further comprises facilitating substantially synchronous streaming of data between said at least one data interface and said at least one generated first application interface.

35. The method of claim 24, wherein (e) further comprises facilitating substantially asynchronous streaming of data between said at least one data interface and said at least one generated first application interface.

36. The method of claim 24, wherein (e) further comprises facilitating on demand access to said first stream of data between said at least one generated first application interface and said at least one data interface.

37. The method of claim 24, wherein (e) further comprises regulating said first stream of data.

38. The method of claim 24, wherein (e) further comprises buffering said first stream of data.

39. The method of claim 38, wherein (e) further comprises providing first and second buffers, each of said first and second buffers characterized by a fixed capacity, alternately buffering said first stream of data in said first and second buffers, and maintaining a continuous stream of data between said data interface and said generated first application interface when said first stream of data exceeds said fixed capacity of one of said first and second buffers.

40. The method of claim 24, further comprising:

(f) facilitating a second stream of data between a second generated application interface and a second data interface concurrently with said first stream without impeding said first stream.

41. The method of claim 24, further comprising:

(f) computing, selectively, by said first application program, a boundary of an object represented in a data stream comprising at least a portion of an ultrasound scan of said object and generating a representation of said boundary on a display coupled with said ultrasound system, said display substantially simultaneously displaying said portion of said ultrasound scan.

42. An ultrasound stream manager for a diagnostic medical ultrasound system, said ultrasound system comprising a processor means, data source means for providing a source of streaming data and data sink means for receiving streaming data, said stream manager operative to facilitate communication between a first application program executing in said processor means and at least one of said data source means and said data sink means, said stream manager comprising:

data source interface means for receiving data from said data source means;

data sink interface means for transmitting data to said data sink means;

first generating means for selectively generating an application input interface means between said data source interface means and said first application program such that said first application program may receive data from said associated data source means via said data source interface means and said application input interface means;

second generating means for selectively generating an application output interface means between said data sink interface means and said first application program such that said first application program may transmit data to said associated data sink means via said data sink interface means and said application output interface means; and

control means for facilitating a first stream of data between said first application program and at least one of said generated application input interface means and application output interface means.

43. A component of a diagnostic medical ultrasound system, said system comprising a source of a sequence of digital data, said source specific to said system, and an application program capable of incrementally receiving and processing each datum of said sequence of digital data, said component comprising:

a stream manager operative to dynamically couple said application program with said source when said application is executed on said system and facilitate said application program incrementally receiving each datum of said sequence of digital data.

44. The component of claim 43, wherein said source is characterized by being asynchronous, said stream manager being further operative to buffer data to facilitate said application program incrementally receiving each datum asynchronously.